Bryan urged the public to push for the legislation that would require new buses to have seat belts and other safety improvements and to ensure that bus carriers follow standard procedures to prevent driver fatigue. Federal transportation authorities say driver fatigue causes almost 40 percent of accidents they investigate.

Brown, a Democrat, authored the Motorcoach Enhanced Safety Act, which is co-sponsored by Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas. He first introduced the legislation in 2008 but until this year failed to gain enough traction. The bill recently passed out of a committee and now awaits a full Senate vote.